My Half Full Glass – December 27th, 2012

Hermann Wiemer 2010 Magdalena Dry Riesling

The team at Hermann J. Wiemer in the Finger Lakes are producers of world class wines. I’ve visited them twice, tasted the wines several times so I know this first hand. There isn’t anything I’ve had from them that didn't make me reflect on how lucky I am to be able to enjoy their products.

Earlier this year I placed an order (a refill if you will) that included several bottles of the 2010 Magdalena Dry Riesling. I had seen a recommendation for it from Lenn Thompson of the New York Cork Report. The description of it made me think of wine at a whole other level than I knew from the producer, and I knew I must try it for myself. Soon after the wine arrived, and I immediately forgot about it. I was reminded of it by Lenn again this week, but this time I opened one.

This wine is an impeccable example of what top notch Riesling tastes like. It is labeled as dry, and I maintain that it is, but it is the most luscious and textural domestic dry Riesling that I have ever had. The nose is captivating, pushing forth both fruit and mineral components. Everything after the first sniff builds even higher. The body of the wine almost feels like a light syrup and the flavors of citrus, pear, peach and accessible and refined. I could say many more good things about this wine, but I believe I've said enough to convey my fondness for it.

Ancient Fire Spiced Wine

I’ll admit up front that I haven’t consumed much of this homemade batch of wine yet. I should also disclose that is a second wine, one made from fresh grape leftovers, and that is was infused with spices and orange. Some of you might be asking yourself “why would he do this?” Because I can. The grapes were softly pressed and still minimally viable, so I decided not to throw out what I could use. I modeled the result after Swedish Glogg or German Gluwhein, except that I put everything needed to serve it in the bottle, obviating the need for the mulling process.

Warming it before service is my suggested method, and depending on how much of the added sweetness was retained, a little bit more may be added. The base of the wine is Concord grapes and it is very purple in color. The spices, allspice, cinnamon and clove, as well as the orange are present in the nose. The wine trends quite tart, although the sweetness in the middle to finish should mitigate the perception of the tartness. The final blend did also include some dry table wine to bring the body up a bit. I used some homemade Malbec and Tempranillo from 2010 to achieve this.

A simple wine with a punch-like character, it should do nicely as a winter warmer with no strings attached. I don’t plan on any serious consideration of it, and if you are lucky enough to try some, I don’t expect you to give it a formal tasting either.

Cheers!

Jason

My Half Full Glass - November 29th, 2012

So, I finally got this new weekly column thing calibrated. It's amazing what a vacation and  a holiday can do to a screw up a schedule! This new column is where I will feature notable beverages that I've enjoyed within the last couple of weeks.

Florida Beers

During a week-long trip to the Orlando, Florida area I sampled a number of Florida beers and found several that I would highly recommend. I sampled in a number of settings, on draft at the Epcot Food & Wine Festival and Big River Grille, then from bottles back at my vacation place and at the Bahama Breeze.  

In general Florida brewers are embracing lighter styles (lager, pilsner, wheat beers) but based on the climate and cuisine, I see this working well. I was able to taste a range of beers, including several IPAs and brown beers in addition to Pilsner, Lager and Wheat beers.

At the Epcot Food & Wine Festival the Florida Beer Company's Key West Southernmost Wheat was my favorite amongst it, the Florida Lager and Devil's Triangle IPA also from the same producer. Light, with a slightly creamy texture, the crisp finish and light body of this beer would make it versatile with a range of local foods. The Devil's Triangle IPA was good, but the bitterness felt a little forced. I'll share more on the Epcot Food & Wine Festival in a separate post.

I stopped at World of Beer in Clermont, Florida and selected six singles to take home to share with a friend. The photo below shows the lineup which included the Florida Brewing Key West Sunset Lager, OBP LLC Orange Blossom Pilsner, Holy Mackerel Special Golden Ale, Florida Brewing Swamp Ape, Cigar City Brewing Jai Alai IPA and Cigar City Brewing Maduro Brown Ale.

All the beers were well made and plenty drinkable. The Sunset Lager is pretty straightforward and didn't garner much comment. The Orange Blossom Pilsner, one of two of the beers brewed under contract in SC, was nice blend of a wit style beer with honey. It smelled and tasted like oranges with some honey notes in the finish. The Holy Mackerel Golden Ale was an exceptional drinker. A Belgian beer all the way, it was a bit yeasty, spicy and fruity. Lively and super drinkable. The Swamp Ape was my favorite. A sweeter IPA, similar to DFH 90 I'd reckon, it was smooth, hoppy and so delicious! Both of the Cigar City beers were very well polished, but the Maduro Brown Ale won the face off. I had this beer before the two other brown beers I enjoyed next, and it was the best non-pale ale so far. Rich, nutty and full on the palate. It isn't a huge beer so you could drink a few to make you real happy!

The Big River Grille & Brewpub on Disney's Boardwalk is a brewpub/restaurant owned by the same group that operates Rock Bottom and Gordon Biersch. Their holiday beers were on tap and we checked out both the Winter Brown Ale and Winter's Nip Holiday Bock after a relaxing walk of the boardwalk and adjacent resorts. The Winter's Nip Bock is a fantastic, moderately malty brown beer with hints of spice and banana in the nose. Definitely a nice warmer for those cool Florida winter days. I could drink way too many of these!

At the Bahama Breeze I paired Orlando Brewing's Organic Blonde Ale with the Mahi tacos for lunch. Definitely a great combination. The beer on its own is flavorful, dry with hints of citrus in the finish. Perfect with lighter fare.

Thanksgiving Wine

What wine to pair with Thanksgiving is always a sporting topic for the wine media to attend to this time each year. I've done it in several recent rotations (2008, 2010, 2011), but opted not to in 2012. There is no "right" or "perfect" answer to "what wines do I pair with Thanksgiving dinner?" and exactly who graces your table and what kind of mood everyone is in is much more of a concern than the wine. But, this year what I did select to have on the table for my family meal was quite successful and as a result worth sharing.

Close de la Roilette, Cuvée Tardive 2011 Fleurie

The review for the Clos de la Roilette, Cuvée Tardive 2011Fleurie from Jancis Robinson made the rounds late in October and I was curious. With so much love showered on this wine, "I'm in love" and "Yum, yum, yum" as just two examples, I figured I had little if anything to lose on a couple bottles. I found them for around $35 with shipping from Flat Iron Wines in New York, and got ahead of the season and had my wine in hand two weeks before the holiday.  Flat Iron is only stocking magnums of the 2011 right now, but after tasting this wine I can't see why that would be a losing proposition either!

Beaujolais for Thanksgiving, how stereotypical for me! Yes, it did work out that way. I felt this wine would make for a pleasant drinking experience for Margot and I in that setting. I don't always expect those I share wine with to say anything at all about a particular bottle so bringing something for me to pay attention to makes plenty of sense. This wine is precisely dry and focused. The ripe fruit aromas and flavors don't feel forced and come off full, yet fresh. There is a particular minerality to this wine, and I also felt a bit of spice or herb in the finish was not standard/everyday Beaujolais. It was easy drinking, smooth and had a gentle tannic bite in the finish.

With the onslaught of holiday table flavors this wine did admirably, pairing best with a squash and mushroom tart that also had melted cheese on top. The flavor combination in that dish matched the fruit/earth combo in the wine better than everything else. Margot loved this wine and I'd recommend it highly to others. Don't buy all the magnums from Flat Iron before I get to order some though!

Wiemer Late Harvest Riesling

For dessert, which was apple or squash pie of course, I paired the Hermann J. Wiemer Select Late Harvest Riesling dessert wine. We've had this wine several times and the massive flavors of sweet fruits and tart citrus go great with dessert. All the glasses were promptly emptied.

Cheers!

Jason